2014 Wimbledon: Buy/Sell/Hold

After finally taking home the Wimbledon title last year, will Andy Murray be able to defend it? (Steve Bardens/Getty Images)

How well and how quickly can the games best transition from clay to grass? With Wimbledon set to begin on June 23, we take stock of the men and women who made the quarterfinals or better at the French Open to determine which players to buy, sell and hold.

Rafael Nadal: Sell. The French Open champion crashed out of the Gerry Weber Open to No. 85Dustin Brown in his opening round, which was no surprise or cause for panic after the quick turnaround from Roland Garros. But the 28-year-old Spaniard has now lost his last three matches on grass dating to his stunning second-round defeat to Lukas Rosol at Wimbledon in 2012. Nadal could win Wimbledon for the third time I wouldnt bet against it but so much of it is draw dependent.Given his vulnerability in the early rounds, Ideither hold him for the short term or sell him for the long term. Its just a matter of time before he relinquishes the No. 1 ranking to Novak Djokovic, and he has winners points to defend at Canada, Cincinnati and the U.S. Open over the summer.

Maria Sharapova: Hold. Because she won her maiden Grand Slam title at 17 by beating Serena Williams on the Wimbledon grass, its easy to fall into the trap of thinking that Sharapova is a force on faster surfaces. But since that victory, in 2004, shes reached only one Wimbledon final, losing to Petra Kvitova in 2011. In fact, shes advanced past the fourth round just once since 2006. Her serve is no longer a weapon on grass in fact, its a liability and Im inclined to sell her now and reassess after the U.S. Open, where, again, she hasnt made a final since she won it in 2006.That said, she has just one match win to defend for the rest of the season, and she lost in the second round of Wimbledon last year. So if youre looking to capitalize on a rankings jump,hold for the rest of the season.

Novak Djokovic: Buy. The Serb rebounded well after his disappointing loss to Nadal in the French Open semifinals last year, making the Wimbledon final and losing to Andy Murray. I expect him to do the same this year. His defending is impeccable on grass, and if not for that draining five-set win over Juan Martin del Potro in the semifinals last year, who knows what would have happened in the final? Djokovic, 27, feels due for a Slam win, having falling short in the last five.

Simona Halep: Hold. Halep has no Wimbledon results to speak of: Shes never even advanced to the third round in three attempts. But she had never surpassed the second round of Roland Garros before this year either, when she coasted to the final. The new No. 3 has won a title on grass (last year in Rosmalen, the Netherlands), and her high seeding could give her some cushion against easier opposition through the early rounds. But her serve is attackable, and if she pulls a nightmare draw against a zoning offensive-minded player, she could lose early.

Andy Murray: Hold. Its hard to know how Murray will handle the pressure of defending his Wimbledon title. Add to that the potential distraction of having to answer question after question about new coach Amelie Mauresmo. After his run to the semifinals of the French Open, Im assuming that his price is pretty high, so Id hold him and see how it turns out. Looking more long term, Murray is definitely a buy. Sure, he has a massive amount of points to defend at Wimbledon, but he didnt do much after winning the title last year. The rest of the season is a big opportunity for him to pick up points.

Eugenie Bouchard: Hold. The 12th-ranked Bouchard is the only woman to make the semifinals of both majors this year, and shes not allergic to grass. She won the junior Wimbledon title only two years ago, and her first significant Slam success came last year at the All England Club, where she knocked out Ana Ivanovic in the secondround. In many ways, the 20-year-old Bouchard is still an unknown quantity. We simply dont have a complete data set on a player who is in her second full year on tour. But Bouchard has shown she can handle the big occasion well, and shell benefit from a higherseeding.

Ernests Gulbis: Buy. Im going out on a limb here. Gulbis is a high-risk buy given his lack of success on grass he lost to Kenny De Schepperin his opening round of Queens this week and his loopy forehand should, theoretically, be a disaster on the surface. All that is balanced against his booming serve, deft touch and the fact that hes a completely different player now compared to the one in years past. If he receives a good draw, he could be this years Jerzy Janowicz. In the long term, hes in good position to qualify for the ATP World Tour Finals, sitting at No. 7 in the Race to London standings. Hes on the rise.

Andrea Petkovic: Sell. Petkovic would tell you herself to sell. Grass is her least favorite surface by far, though she did play better last year, when she lost to Sloane Stephens 8-6 in the third set of the Wimbledon second round. Still, considering her high value coming out of the French Open, where she made her first major semifinal, it would be best to take the profit now and reassess midsummer.

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2014 Wimbledon: Buy/Sell/Hold